# Puff Monthly Tobacco Review: GL Pease – Lagonda



## Nick S. (Jul 10, 2011)

October is here; time to open those tins (if you haven't already) and post your reviews here in this thread. Let's try to keep the discussion to a minimum, other than relevant comments. Other statements (such as "nice review" and such) and banter should go in the voting thread, Here: http://www.cigarforums.net/forums/vb/general-pipe-forum/298472-puff-monthly-tobacco-october.html


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## Nick S. (Jul 10, 2011)

GL Pease - Lagonda
The newest offering from GL Pease's Old London Series, Lagonda, was released in July of 2011. From the can _" Lagonda, A luxurious blend comprising generous portions of Cyprus latakia, ripe red virginias and fine oriental leaf with a bit of bright added for a hint of gentle sweetness. Pressing and aging in cakes integrates the flavours and partially ferments the tobaccos. The cakes are then sliced and tumbled into ribbons, ready for your enjoyment."__ My can has a date code of 062711, indicating that it was a little over 3 months old at the time of opening._

In The Tin/Pouch
Upon opening this tobacco I was greeted by a light and dark brown and black broken flake style tobacco. The aroma reminded me of leather accompanied by the smokiness of a fire, maybe fire dried leather? Anyway, it smells great if you are one of those that likes the earthy natural smells of the latakia blend tobaccos. The moisture of the tobacco is fine if you are impatient and want to smoke it right away, but I let mine dry out for a bit. I experimented with drying times and had good results with drying times between 15 and 45 minutes. 

The Burn
After about some drying time (I think 45 minutes worked best), I lightly rubbed this with my fingers to break apart some of the larger pieces before loading into my pipe. I found that it lit easily, and burned very well when properly dried. Relights were needed only infrequently, and I did it more to "top off" the cherry than because it had gone out all the way. I had mixed results with gurgle, some could probably have been due to pipe engineering but I feel that some was also due to variances in drying time. Of course I always found a little moisture at the end after I dumped the pipe, but the amount was also related to drying time. One interesting thing I have found regarding moisture and gurgle, for those of us who smoke outside, it has been my experience that the weather (temperature, and humidity) can have an effect on whether your pipe will gurgle or not. 

The Smoke
I found that this tobacco went through some changes as the bowl progressed. Upon lighting the bowl, I was greeted with the smoky latakia, a flavor that I enjoy. This was dominant throughout the first third or so of the bowl. However, as I entered the second third the latakia seemed to fade to the back and became a drifting memory as the virginias and orientals came to the front. During the final portion of the bowl the smoke became much richer and more robust, and the spicy, orientals really seemed to shine. The smoke was cool, and I got no hint of bite whatsoever. 

The Aroma
I can't really comment on the aroma of this tobacco as I didn't smoke it around anyone, and I smoked it outside. From the little smoke I could smell I sensed the smoky latakia, and a kind of sour note possibly from the oriental tobacco.

The Packaging, and Price
This tobacco is available in 2oz cans from various online and B&M retailors. I purchased mine from www.smokingpipes.com and I paid $10.16, it is also available at www.pipesandcigars.com for $9.55 (though I believe that is a sale price). 

The Bottom Line
At first I didn't really care for this tobacco, but as I kept smoking it really grew on me. I still don't think that this will make it into any kind of rotation. The smoky latakia is there but it isn't very strong, and I think I would have preferred that it be a little stronger. I did like the second half of the smoke as the tobacco became a bit stronger, but I wish that the latakia presence would and been a little more forward throughout the smoke. I'm not sure what the ratio of these tobaccos is, but for some reason I was expecting the latakia to be a little more dominant in this blend.It is a good tobacco, but I still can't get really excited about it. I really wanted more from this tobacco, but I found it to be a bit too delicate for my taste. I do think that with some age this blend may get better, though the latakia will most likely mellow out some, I will probably pick up a tin and store it away for a year or two.


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## Hambone1 (May 31, 2011)

This is my first review of any kind on these forums. I don't feel that I have near the experience with tobaccos or pipes as the vast majority of members on this community have. I don't have a refined since of taste or smell as some do. So here is my first shot at a review.

In the Tin/Pouch
I loved the smell when I first opened the tin. I could definitely smell the Lakatia, which I love. I immediately poured it into a pouch and began to carry it with me everywhere. I did get a reaction from people I work with when I loaded my pipe at work. They first said, 'What's that smell?'. And then someone replied, 'It smells like a camp fire.'. Exactly! The smell in the pouch reminded me of those times I've been camping.

The Burn
I didn't dry this tobacco out, just placed it in a pouch and loaded the pipe from that. I never had a problem with the burn nor gurgling. Now I will say that I'm not one of those that lights a pipe once and it burns all the way through. I never seem to have the luxury of sitting or being stationary during my pipe smokes. If and when the pipe was going out I would have to find the time to tamp it down and relight. But this is because I was either driving or doing something else, so I'm not a good example of sitting and smoking a bowl through. I had no problems with relights.

The Smoke
I found the Lakatia to be light to medium, which is something I really like. I don't like to be knocked out with a strong taste when I smoke. I wouldn't say the flavor of this is a light tasting smoke, more of a medium to me. It was perfectly flavored for my taste. I did notice that while the taste was always good, the smoke itself was not thick but instead light and thin. Only time I had a thick amount of smoke was during the initial charring lights. I didn't experience any tongue bite at all.

Conclusion
This is definitely a tobacco that I would keep in my cellar and open from time to time. I wouldn't smoke it daily but it will definitely be something I will have around and smoke from time to time. I would be interested in cellaring this and open an aged tin to see how much better this would be with some age on it.


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## freestoke (Feb 13, 2011)

Have they named a tobacco after a car or a piano? Pipe tobaccos often have place names, job titles (Squadron Leader, Teacher, Accountant), naval and military references, dates...not many automobiles out there, although there are a few trains. Can't think of a single one named for a musical instrument offhand. 

It seems a trifle lighter in color than one would expect, given the Latakia smell in the jar, but that is soon explained by the limited Latakia presence in the smoke. Not a Latakia-heavy blend, although I'm sure that enough is there to offend those who don't like it. The cut I would call "various"; cubes, crimps, ribbon and rubbed out flake, I imagine to be reflective of the different types of leaf it contains. The larger pieces seemed to need a little breaking up -- maybe not, but I did it anyhow. For this review, I employed the virtually foolproof MM Country Gentleman, first drying the tobacco some under the lamp. I used a Frank fill.

On lighting, the Latakia predictably dominates, but not long afterward the smokiness boils off, remaining subdued for the rest. Very smooth on the palate and only after reaching mid bowl does any sort of snorkiness present itself (not that one would expect a lot, sans perique). Even that soon disappeared and I found myself doing a few French inhales to bring out the taste -- but to good effect! It has a fine, sweet flavor, very civilized, very refined. I briefly left the room and then returned, still puffing the bowl, to test the room note -- not as objectionable as some Latakia blends, certainly, and not the cigar-like scent of stronger blends, either; the Virginias are mild and orientals always seem to be so. 

Trying a few early bowls of Lagonda led me to dry it further this time and it seems to work very well at this somewhat dry level, although I would hardly call it "crispy". A couple or three more vigorous puffs mid bowl set it going full throat again and it delivers a reasonably generous quantity of smoke rather easily. Finger damping stabilizes it without much effort and I employed that more frequently during the second half. I could taste little other than the orientals toward the end, but the mildness of the Virginias made it difficult for them to have much impact. I would attribute the increasing sweetness downbowl to the Virginias. 

To test its power, I smoked it for the first bowl of the day, before eating. If there was going to be a Vitamin N infusion, I wanted to know for sure. There was not a lot, but one would hardly expect it, given the components. More nicotine than "mild", but barely reaching my "medium" standard. I read the reviews on tobaccoreviews to get the drift of others take on it and can only wonder what those reviewers usually smoke to give it "medium to strong". It is not strong and aging would not change that.

All in all, a very high quality English. As the smoke wound down, it began to remind me of Penzance, although that was scarcely the case early on. While Penzance lingered at the end with a delicious essence, Lagonda had only a few puffs of that -- and then it was gone. I did relight once, but that was caused by a clumsy tamp toward the end; dried a bit first it burns beautifully, being somewhat more finicky straight from the jar. 

A strong 3 stars. If anything, it needs a more potent Virginia. I have no quarrel with the light-handed Latakia content, nor the excellent orientals. Will I buy more? Not likely, since without a perique kicker or solid nicotine punch, there's not much to keep my interest. I would say that this is an excellent blend, but not quite my style. It should please many smokers very much indeed!


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## karatekyle (Nov 2, 2010)

Okay, I've been smoking this for a few days now. I'm really not a fan or latakia or oriental tobaccos but it PISSES ME OFF when people on tobacco reviews write reviews that go "Well, I don't like latakia at all. I tried this, such-an-such english blend, and confirmed that it does in fact have latakia. One star." Uh? If you hate something to the point that you have no desire to explore it, don't try to write maps on your explorations. Its just stupid. /rant :rant: So I won't be doing that. My review will be as objective as possible.

So as an english blend, this was very good. I have a shallow base of experience with latakia and orientals so the last week of September, I tried to smoke as much english as I could. The blend was classified as a heavy lat so I burned through my whole stash of Penzance (aww :frown and about 3/4 of a tin of Dunhill Nightcap as my pre-test for the big lagonda exam...

So here goes nothing!!

Okay. Out of the can, its a very unique smell. I like to pop the top and give a good snort to really smell the more "hard" aromas of the tobacco. I find that if you assess the smell after it dries, it becomes too mellow to really appreciate. Loses a lot of its tangibility. So right out of the can, the smell is latakia. Smells like barbeque sauce with a sort of unusual combination of copper/blood and smokiness. The looks is kinda like hair covered in honey. Its a broken flake, so each strip is a clump of tobacco. I enjoy boken flakes, the pack and light is tough to screw up. They always seem to smoke well, this blend is no exception. I let the whole tin dry a bit after I got it. And then each smoke got a 30-40 minute prep dry as well, some bowls with a slight rub.

I found that it smokes best after you rub the chunks out a little bit more. Honestly, the finer I rubbed it, the more complex the smoke seemed. I'm planning on another bowl tomorrow of ultra fine consistency to see how that smokes.

I hate to admit it, but all I taste is latakia. It has a latakia and over-steeped tea sort of taste with a hint of buttermilk profile. A rancid (but not in a bad way, just a sour ranch dressing flavor) and bitter taste in the background. I'll assume this is whatever oriental tobacco used in this blend? I kinda like it. I would enjoy this blend with a dash of blending perique and half the latakia, I dare say. Otherwise, I didn't like it much. Personal taste. But it seems like a darn fine english. The latakia had a very similar flavor to what is found in Nightcap, so I'll assume they're both the same type (cyperian, if my research is correct?), minus the perique that nightcap has. 

I think I'll save a bit of this and cut it with different blends to see what I end up with. I find myself craving latakia more an more often, this could be a blend I grow into.


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## fwhittle (Aug 1, 2011)

This is my first G.L. Pease Tobacco, and my first review.

*Tin Note*

Latakia first and foremost. I like to sniff the tin like I do a wine, and doing so I could get some of the raisin scent from the Virginias and a little something else from the Orientals. I liked the tin note, my boys did, also. My daughter is not a fan of Latakia. Colors range from dark brown to light tan, very loose broken flake. The tobacco had a slightly moist feel.

*The Burn*

I used a Nude Savinelli Lumberman shaped pipe, deep bowl and long shank. Salt treatment a week before to clean it out. For some reason, this pipe has never seen much action, but it felt right for this blend. I used the 3 layer fill, right out of the tin. It took a couple of tries to get it lit, with all the rain we've had here lately, I'm not surprised. I had some drying his morning and it filled the room with a nice aroma of latakia. Once lit, with a Zippo pipe lighter, it burned fine. Relights took no effort at all.

*The Smoke*

Lots of smoke when lit and relit. Very little smoke once settled in a nice puff pace. At first all I could taste was latakia. I slowed down my smoke, treated it like a Virginia, then the Virginias took the forefront, and the latakia finished. Throughout there was some spiciness I attribute to the Orientals. No nic hit that I could feel. Nice mellow smoke, easy puffing. I did get a couple of strange tastes: lemon/citrus and an almost clove like antiseptic taste. Neither lasted more than one puff. Also, I got some bitterness in the beginning, like a Gin and Tonic, I liked it.

*Conclusion*

This is an easy english blend. Virginia fans might like it. May be a good transition for some from Aro's to English. I liked it. This is a good Autumn smoke for me. I will most likely keep some of this in my cellar. I still want to try this in a smaller bowl and also dried out more

Thanks for reading,
Fred ipe:


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## JuanOrez (Apr 15, 2011)

*Tin pop:*

Typical smokey latakia aroma. The smell didn't seem as strong to me as Larry's Blend from Russ Ouellette and definitely less intense than other Latakia bombs like Odyssey from Pease.

*Smoking:*

Great smokey flavor on initial light and easy to keep lit. I tried the tobacco two ways. The first time I tried a small bowl using a meerschaum without any drying time. The second time I used a different meerschaum with the same shape and size. In the second trial I dried the tobacco for almost an hour before loading the pipe. I noticed minimal changes but preferred the tobacco that was dried slightly more than straight from the tin. This could be personal preference as I generally enjoy my tobacco a little drier. In both cases the latakia dominated. It also seemed like it could benefit from aging but time will tell. Aging may mellow the lat and balance the rest.

*Conclusion:*

A good baccy that I wouldn't mind smoking once in while. I definitely prefer other english blends but this one is nice and deserves time to age before a final review is given. I would give this blend 3.5/5.


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## BrewShooter (Mar 17, 2011)

Okay, here’s my uneducated take on Lagonda:

Tin Aroma and Appearance – The aroma of the freshly popped tin is dominated by the smokiness of the latakia. There is also an earthy quality to the aroma and hints of leather and a definite woody, almost cedar, note. Every once in a while, I get a spice note that is similar to peppercorn, not as intense as ground or cracked pepper. The appearance is a chunky ribbon/broken flake cut and ranges from a medium to very dark brown.

Pack and Smoke – I actually had a little difficulty with this. The tobacco was moist so I let it sit for about 15-20 minutes, but it would have benefited from more time. I also think that the rough chunks need to be rubbed out a little further. I managed to pack a pipe that was hard for me to keep lit. I think extra drying time and breaking up the flake would have helped. When lit, the pipe did not produce large volumes of smoke.

Flavor – Honestly, the latakia is not as strong as I would have expected based on the tin note. It’s a medium level latakia blend, at best. I did get a bit of the bitter/soapy note I often get from latakia blends, but it was relatively mild. I did pick up the woody/cedar quality that was in the aroma occasionally in the flavor and enjoyed it when I could find it. In the background there was also a hint of an incense like flavor as well as a sourness developing later in the bowl that I’m assuming came from the oriental tobaccos.

Overall – Would I add it to my cellar? Sure, if I wasn’t already stocked up on a few similar blends that I prefer. Lagonda didn’t blow me away with anything new, but it also left me feeling absolutely content with my smoke at the end of the bowl and, to me, that’s really the point of a good tobacco.


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## gahdzila (Apr 29, 2010)

I certainly don't consider myself qualified to review a pipe tobacco...nonetheless, here's my thoughts on it with the disclaimer that I'm a cigar guy who is still very new to the pipe.

This is my first GLP blend to try. The tin date on mine is 6/9/11.

Initial appearance in the tin is ribbony broken flake, brown to black in color. It smells earthy and...well...latakia-y. It's almost fine to pack as is, but there are a few chunks and pieces that need to be broken up a bit more before packing.

I packed this the way I pack virtually everything - loose pinches to fill the bowl, push down a little, more loose pinches, push down a little, repeat until it "feels" about right, then check the draw, and maybe add a little more until the draw feels about right. I didn't experiment with drying times....just packed the pipe from the jar, and left the packed pipe sit for 20-30 minutes before smoking. I live in Louisiana - leaving pipe tobacco sitting out on the counter would probably make it more moist than in the tin LOL.

I had no issues with burn or smoke volume. It didn't seem to require any more or any less relights than anything else. I got a tiny bit of gurgle once or twice, but honestly I'm still working out my technique with the pipe, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was user error. It wasn't enough gurgle to get to my mouth or to bother me at all, so no biggie.

On initial light up of my first bowl, the first couple of puffs were just "BAM! Latakia!". I don't smoke a whole lot of latakia heavy blends, so it took a little getting used to. I do find the taste of latakia pleasant, but its a very overpowering and one-dimensional flavor to me, and not something I'd want very often...and Lagonda is no exception. After the initial latakia yell in the first puff or two (and honestly, I only got that "BAM" in the first couple of bowls I smoked), Lagonda quickly settles down. I found the flavors not very strong or pronounced at all. An interesting creamy-smoothness develops around a quarter of the way into the bowl. And that's pretty much it.....lower key latakia with a subtle creamy-smoothness. A tiny hint of sweetness nudges in towards the bottom of the bowl, but I have to stretch to pick this up.

Overall thoughts - It's pleasant. I didn't dislike it. But the more I smoked it, I just found myself wishing it would make a stand, jump out at me, show me something more, and it never did. One dimensional, not a strong enough flavor to pull me in, not enough nicotine to interest me on that front...frankly, I found it rather boring. I've smoked a bunch of it over the last few days to prepare for my review, but I'm going to shelve it for a while. I'm sure I'll finish the tin eventually, but I doubt I'll be buying more.


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## DanR (Nov 27, 2010)

Like some others, this is my first review ever, so here goes...

If you are a coffee drinker, you know that the very first whiff of the grounds after you break the seal is the best it's ever going to get. It doesn't get worse mind you, but there's just something about that anticipatory first whiff. Well, that's what I love about cracking a new tin of tobacco - especially if it's one I haven't had before. I pop the tin and immediately pull it to my nose and inhale deeply. The aroma out of this tin was slightly of burning rubber, like tires melting, but gives way to a sweetness that reminds me of figs. I kept going back for more, so that's a good sign.

Upon lighting I taste the campfire I expected but it's very subtle. Immediately I am transported away from the fire and into an old library, with leather covered chairs and old books everywhere. It's dry, almost dusty from cobwebs. The dryness leads to a spiciness that makes me stop to take a drink from my beer. I'm almost certain its the orientals that a lending this flavor to the smoke.

About midway through the bowl and the Latakia has faded so much that I now taste fruit. At first I think grapes, but that's not it. What is it? Plums? No. I think it's prunes? It's faint, but I'm sure I taste prunes, almost as if grandma was making her old fashioned prune cake again. Sweet prunes with a touch of spiciness that's still in there. That flavor is alternating with a hint of wood that peeks it's head in from time to time. I don't think it's from the pipe, because I've used this one many times, so it must be the tobacco.

Almost done now and the flavor has changed again. It's still sweet, just not as sugary as it was before. It's seems almost like dried water crackers that start out plain, but sweeten a bit as you chew. I'm still tasting a little fruit, but it seems more like dried cherries now, but not as sweet. I'm also tasting some herbal tea, or maybe green tea, thrown in the mix. The wood is still popping in from time to time as well. 

That water cracker cherry tea flavor seems to carry me all the way to the end.

I really liked how this tobacco changed throughout the smoke, but something was making my mouth dry as I smoked it. By the time I was done, I had a strange astringency in my mouth like I had been chewing on grape vines. Like others have reported, I didn't get a big nic hit from this one. For me, the jury is still out on Lagonda. I'll have to smoke a few more bowls before I decide if it goes on my favorites list.


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## Wallbright (Jan 2, 2011)

To start this off, I have not smoked a pipe since about February of this year. I typically smoke cigars in the warmer months and pipes in the colder months. I did smoke once over the summer but I don't count it really as I didn't finish a bowl. So since this is my first bowl in months it will probably take me a while to get back in the swing of things so please pardon my review. Though, I never really was talented at doing reviews haha.

Tin: I actually received this from DanR so I never actually had the tin. From the baggie I picked up on a wood smell. This was coupled with a leather and camp fire smell of the latakia. Smells like a typical english blend. 

Burn: The burn was fairly good. I forgot to dry it out before and I feel that it would benefit from an hour or so of laying out. I had a few relights but that is typical when I smoke. 

Smoke: While smoking this blend I picked up on a woodsy campfire taste from the latakia that had a nice spicy kick. I did pick up some on the virginia present. I would describe it as a earthy taste. It was very light and pleasant. There was also a graham cracker type taste if I could describe it as that. There was a decent amount of smoke that was produced. 

Packaging: N/A as I never saw the tin.

Bottom line: This is atypical english blend that adds virginia to the mix, which was a nice change of pace. I enjoyed it but I don't know if I would buy any more (but I do wonder what it will be like with a few years age). There are too many other blends out there to stock up on or try. Although it didn't have a 'wow' factor for me, it was still enjoyable.


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## Mante (Dec 25, 2009)

First bowl down, five to go. I have refused to read this thread so as not to slant my review but I must say that first bowl was enjoyable. I'll have my review up within 48 hours then I'll start on the OGS next weekend. eace:


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## Mante (Dec 25, 2009)

An afternoon in Venice on a gondola. Dammit, I was daydreaming again! Ahem.... I'll start again.

*An afternoon on the deck with Lagonda.*

On opening the tin memories of camping trips amongst the trees came flooding to mind. Woody campfires but to put a finer point on the tin aroma, relit hardwood campfires on a dew soaked morning. That is about as close as I can come to describing such a wonderful smell.

This review was conducted by smoking three different bowls in three differing pipes packed in three varying ways. The pipes are as per the picture, two briars and a cob. The cob was packed medium tight as it draws easily, the big briar was packed with the larger pieces & the little briar was gravity filled with the smaller tailings I could pick out of the tin. The ambient RH was between 56 & 64% while the temp was between 68 & 74*F










GLP seems to know how to make an enjoyable blend here from my experience, especially if you are a latakia fan, and this tobacco stayed lit no matter how it was packed once it was dried somewhat. I had a few separate bowls prior to this and it was still to damp so I dried these samples overnight.

All three bowls exhibited the same characters on smoking, that is to say that on the light it seemed a mild smoke with a distinctly wood characteristic that built as I progressed to become somewhat stronger & the latakia was definately there towards the end. A slight sweetness was present in the beginning and continued for a while, due to the VA I assume but it was somewhat overpowerd by the latakia towards the halfway mark. I consider this a light tobacco concerning nicotine but that is not to say it is lightweight in body as you journey through the bowl. Smoke is not hard to produce with a little effort though not copious as with some blends.

As far as room note goes I cannot comment as I smoke outside but on lighting the first one Tash remarked through the screen door that it smelt like I had just lit the fireplace with green kindling.

I enjoyed this tobacco for it's woody undertones and lightness in the first half of the bowl though the build of latakia towards the end is not to my liking. Would I smoke it again? Yes. Would I build a stash of any quantity? Unlikely methinks. This tin will be cellared & revisited in a year or so.

My apologies for the brevity here as there was a major shipping issue involved, not allowing me to spend as much time as I would have liked on this one.


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## jfserama (Mar 26, 2009)

Well I never got around to writing a review about this tobacco. Mostly because I had some unexpected work issues come up that required extra/late hours, but also because I wasn't very fond of the Lagonda. Whenever I had an opportunity to smoke I just couldn't make myself reach for the GLP. Don't get me wrong I think it was a good tobacco, just not really to my liking, and there are many blends in my cellar that I would rather smoke.

But I did want to post a short review about the blend. Actually, it will be more of a “few scattered thoughts” than a review, but whatever… It's all I got.

I thought it was a quality tobacco, and there seemed to be very little detectable casing added. The latakia tasted good, the VAs tasted good, and so did the orientals. The only problem? None of them took the foreground. It tasted like smoking a civil war of tobaccos. All were vying for the top spot, but none really took center stage. I also had issues with the burn. It was fairly easy to light, but kept sputtering out like a car on empty. It probably needed more drying time, but even so it did seem to have more burn issues than most tobaccos at comparable moisture levels.

Bottom line? I didn't really enjoy it. Didn't hate it, but certainly didn't love it. I guess the best way to describe it would be like a soup that hasn't simmered long enough—all the ingredients are there, but they are not blended together well. I'm going to give the remainder of the tin some time to age and maybe one of the tobaccos will take its place as the frontrunner.


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